A thin-film solar battery module is manufactured through processes of forming a first electrode layer made of a transparent conductive oxide on a translucent substrate and performing laser scribing, forming a semiconductor layer made of amorphous silicon or the like and performing laser scribing, and forming a thin-film such as a second electrode layer (backside electrode) made of metal or the like and performing laser scribing (see Patent Documents 1 to 3).
Since the first electrode layer, the semiconductor layer, and the second electrode layer are formed by vapor-deposition such as a CVD method and a sputtering method, each of the layers is formed on the entire surface of the translucent substrate. After the respective layers are formed, the layers are laser-scribed on the translucent substrate to isolate the device into a plurality of cells, and adjacent solar cells are connected in series (or in parallel). After that, the entire surfaces of the respective layers are sealed with a resin filling material, thus constituting a thin-film solar battery module.
In such a thin-film solar battery module, there arises a problem that an active portion (power generation region) of a solar cell is modified or eroded by infiltration of moisture or the like from the outside at a time of outdoor use, and power generation characteristics are deteriorated accordingly. One of the causes of the problem is the infiltration of moisture from a gap between the substrate and the filling material at an end portion of the solar cell module. Therefore, there is a demand to prevent moisture from infiltrating from the end portion of the solar cell module and improve weatherability.
In this regard, Patent Documents 1 to 3 disclose a thin-film solar battery module manufacturing method in which a transparent electrode layer, an optical semiconductor layer, and a metal layer that are formed on a translucent glass substrate are removed mechanically or by a light beam over an area of 0.5 mm or more from a circumference of a main surface of the circumferential end portion to expose the transparent electrode layer (or the translucent glass substrate), and an isolation line that electrically isolates an active portion and the circumferential end portion is formed by a light beam on an inner side of the portion removed mechanically or by the light beam.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent No. 3243227    Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent No. 3243229    Patent Document 3: Japanese Patent No. 3243232